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“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” ~ Mark Twain

Stopover | A glimpse of downtown Coorg

After the photo walk, we left Solitaire Exotica for yet another interesting place in Bylakuppe, but dropping by downtown Coorg was irresistible. Coorg is known for its spices, coffee, and tea. I did not like spices and knowing we have roasted coffee available in the Philippines, I settled for some green tea that I can brew back home.

Coorg or Kodagu looks like a small town but only because the establishments and places of interests are scattered in the vast geographic location. Coorg is known for its touristy places like the Omkareshwara Temple, Madikeri Fort, Madikeri Palace and the Raja's Seat. Going around Coorg, one needs to have a private vehicle or try India's ubiquitous rickshaw, as the places of interest are quite distant from each other.

Interestingly, Coorg is a multi-ethnic and multi-religion town that is home to Roman Catholics, Hindus, and Muslims. This explains why I saw some people with palms and coming out of a building that happens to be a church. It was a Palm Sunday, I realized.

Interestingly, too, and unlike other parts of India, Coorg places a high importance of women. Women are highly educated and a man who likes to get married does not have to place a dowry. And more importantly, India's caste system is not applicable here. How cool is that!?

It is also the lone town in India where anyone can own a gun without applying for a license. Traditionally, when a son is born, a single gunshot is fired in the air. But when a son dies, they fire two gunshots. They also have a festival dedicated to firearms. I have not seen a gun store while roaming around, though.

Here are some photos of our quick stop-over in Coorg:

Click this LINK for more downtown Coorg Photos. Below is the map of Coorg.

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Aside from my day job, I love photography and storytelling. Going places--be it a cliche destination or the far side of the road--stoke and free my soul. I dig deeper into the people’s psyche, culture and ethnicity, and heritage. I love to observe how they thrive and build social institutions, preserve their culture and traditions.